(MENAFN Press) DUBAI, United Arab Emirates “ September 16, 2012-
Dr. HassoPlattner, SAP co-founder and chairman of the SAP Supervisory Board,was honored by theChurchill Club with the Global Benefactor award for 2012.The prestigious award recognizes global leaders with irrepressible vision and positive impact on society. Itwas presented by renowned author and advisor Geoffrey Moore and Dr. Vishal Sikka, member of the SAP Executive Board leading Technology and Innovation.Following the presentation, Scott McNealy, co-founder of Sun Microsystems and chairman of Wayin,engaged with Plattner in a spirited conversation about talent management, education, innovation and philosophies for personal philanthropy.
Plattnerwas recognized in part for his lifelong passion and commitment to education and research in science and technology. He has been instrumental in the development of numerous breakthrough innovations at SAP and elsewhere, most recently with the company's game-changing in-memory computing platform, SAP HANA.
Plattner founded the HassoPlattner Institute for Software Systems Engineering (HPI) at the University of Potsdam in 1998. He expanded HPI with a "School of Design Thinking" in 2007. Today, nearly 600 students study at HPI, where Plattnerlectures and heads the "Enterprise Platform and Integration Concepts" research and training department. In 2005,he established the HassoPlattner Institute of Design at Stanford University, which offers a radical new approach to design teaching and design thinking. With his leading engagement in science and education, Plattner aims to enable and prepare the next generation of innovators to tackle and solve the complex, real-world challenges of our time.
Plattner founded two business incubator and venture capital funds under "HassoPlattner Ventures" to support entrepreneurs and start-up companies in the IT sector. In 2005, he established the HPI Research School, which today has branches in places like South Africa, and China. In 2010, he established the HPI Future Service Oriented Computing Lab in Potsdam. He also provided significant funding for the expansion of the University of Mannheim library.
Plattner supports science and research in South Africa through the engagement of the HassoPlattner Foundation, particularly with the University of Cape Town. He made a significant investment in HassoPlattner Ventures Africa in 2008. Plattner has donated millions to the fight against AIDS and supports education and sports for children in South Africa along with many other social and environmental projects.
"HassoPlattner is a great teacher of our lives, to me and to countless others," said Sikka. "His unique combination of knowledge, imagination and conviction drives us to uncompromising excellence. From insisting on grounded reality in our engineering to bringing the 'beginner's mind' to our designs, his instincts have shaped SAP for four decades and continue to inspire our ongoing intellectual renewal."
"The Churchill Award for Global Benefactor reflects the impact of voluntary, personal contributions to the betterment of society and the world around us," said Karen Tucker, CEO,Churchill Club. "In keeping with this spirit, we are delighted that the 2012 Global Benefactor Award will be presented to the distinguished and worthy recipient, Dr. HassoPlattner."
A Silicon Valley favorite, the annual Churchill Awards aim to inspire others by highlighting excellence in innovation, leadership, collaboration and societal benefit.In addition to Plattner's Global Benefactor recognition, SpaceX received the Game Changer award, Khosla Ventures Founder VinodKhoslareceived the Legendary Leader award and Box Co-Founders Aaron Levie and Dylan Smith received the Magical Team award. In addition, a discretionary award, the Serial Disruptor Award, was presented to Google.
Nominations were submitted by the Churchill Club Academy, a group of 500 distinguished business and technology executives and professionals, investors, entrepreneurs, academics and members of the press. The Academy voted on the entire list of nominations submitted and an internal selection committee reviewed the votes and finalized the top nominees.Churchill Club is Silicon Valley's premier business and technology forum.
To learn more, visit www.hpi.uni-potsdam.de and www.churchillclub.org. For more information, visit the SAP Newsroom. Follow on Twitter at @sapnews, @HPI_Online and @churchillclub.
